Rocks State Park is a public recreation area located in and around Deer Creek Valley near Pylesville,

Harford County Harford County is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 260,924. Its county seat is Bel Air. Harford County is included in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is al ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. The

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural ...

's preserve the geologic formation known as the King and Queen's Seat and other features in three non-contiguous areas near the junction of

Maryland Route 24 Maryland Route 24 (MD 24) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from an entrance to Aberdeen Proving Ground in Edgewood north to the Pennsylvania state line near Fawn Grove, Pennsylvania, where ...

and

Maryland Route 165 Maryland Route 165 (MD 165) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from Baldwin north to the Pennsylvania state line in Cardiff, where the highway continues as Pennsylvania Route 74 (PA 74). MD 165 passes thr ...

. It is managed by the

Maryland Department of Natural Resources The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is a government agency in the state of Maryland charged with maintaining natural resources including state parks, public lands, state forests, state waterways, wildlife, and recreation areas. It ...

History

The belief that the King and Queen's Seat rock formation was used by Native Americans for ceremonial purposes stems from a book published in 1880 by Thomas Wysong entitled ''The Rocks of Deer Creek: Their Legends and History.'' Wysong's account was written for "the young people especially,... mingling fact and fancy." An archaeological investigation by the Maryland State Highway Administration begun in 2005 failed to find evidence that the site had significance to modern Indians as a “traditional cultural property.” The “Rocks of Deer Creek” were already a tourist attraction in the 19th century, served by the

Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad , familiarly known as the "Ma and Pa", was an American short-line railroad between York and Hanover, Pennsylvania, formerly operating passenger and freight trains on its original line between York and Baltim ...

at milepost 35.3 until 1958. The state purchased 82 acres at the site in 1949, opening it under the name Deer Creek State Park in 1953.

Park areas

;Main: The park has three noncontiguous sections in Deer Creek Valley. The largest section, home to park headquarters, is located along Rocks Ridge and is home to the King and Queen's Seat rock formation, a rock outcropping that towers above the banks of Deer Creek. ;Falling Branch: The Falling Branch area is a tract of land located north of the Rock Ridge section, along the Falling Branch tributary of Deer Creek. It is home to Kilgore Falls, the second highest waterfall in Maryland. Unfortunately, due to Tuck Everlasting, the tree that was called “Falling Branch” was cut down for filming. ;Hidden Valley: The Hidden Valley section, located to the west of the Falling Branch area, is an undeveloped area along the banks of Deer Creek primarily used for fishing.

Activities and amenities

The park offers scenic views on of hiking trails as well as tubing on Deer Creek and picnicking facilities with pavilions. Hunting and fishing are also available.

In popular culture

Kilgore Falls and the King and Queen's Seat rock formation were featured in the movie

Tuck Everlasting ''Tuck Everlasting'' is an American children's novel about immortality written by Natalie Babbitt and published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux in 1975. It has sold over 5 million copies and has been called a classic of modern children's literature ...

References

External links

Rocks State Park
Maryland Department of Natural Resources
Rocks State Park Map
Maryland Department of Natural Resources {{authority control State parks of Maryland Parks in Harford County, Maryland Protected areas established in 1949